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Literature Review

Jennifer Benito

Cal State University - Channel Islands

Health 499

Professor Winans

October 22, 2023

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Mental Health Among College Students

What is mental health? According to MentalHealth.gov, it is a person's emotional,

psychological, and social well-being. A person’s mental health affects how they think, feel, and

act. Having poor mental health can lead to mental health disorders. According to the World

Health Organization (WHO), a mental health disorder is “characterized by a clinically significant

disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior. It is usually

associated with distress or impairment in important areas of functioning.” About 1 in every 8

people suffers from a mental health disorder. There are many types of disorders, including

anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, and

eating disorders. Anyone can develop a disorder. Age, gender, and religion doesn't matter.

Although anyone can suffer from mental health disorders, many college students are the ones

who suffer.

According to a survey, “Ninety-five percent of college counseling center directors

surveyed said the number of students with significant psychological problems is a growing

concern in their center or on campus, according to the latest Association for University and

College Counseling Center Directors survey of counseling center directors” (American

Psychological Association, 2013). These disorders already existed, but after COVID-19, those

issues went on the rise. The coronavirus was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China.

The virus causes what seems like a common cold. People who have severe underlying medical

conditions like heart disease, lung disease, or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing

more serious complications from COVID-19. After it was identified in China, it started to spread
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all over the world. In March 2020, California Governor Newsom placed the stay-at-home order,

which ordered residents to stay home except for essential tasks or work in essential businesses.

Schools were shut down, which was only supposed to be for two weeks, but everything went

online for two years. Although many people suffered due to the pandemic, college students'

mental health plummeted.

Mental health during the pandemic

After the breakout, college campuses closed down, and students had to go home. There

was no socializing, and they couldn’t go anywhere for almost two years. Classes transitioned

online, and it brought hardships. There was no interaction, and many started to have increased

problems with their mental health. A survey done on two hundred college students in four-year

universities in the U.S. found an increase in mental health disorders. There was an 83.8%

increase in at least one mental health symptom. The percentage of increased anxiety among

students they surveyed found that 60.8% felt an increase in anxiety, 54.1% felt an increase in

depression, and 59.8% felt more lonely (Lee et al., 2021). Researchers also asked the students

how hard it was to complete the semester away from campus, and 61% found it challenging (Lee

et al., 2021). Students felt uncertain, which made them anxious because they didn't know how

long this was going to go on or if things would ever go back to normal. Another study consisted

of 2,031 participants at a university in Texas. Out of all the participants, 48.14% had moderate to

severe levels of depression, 18.04% had thoughts of suicide, and 38.48% had mild to severe

levels of anxiety (Wang et al., 2020). There were multiple reasons why students felt this way,

including academic stress. Out of the participants, 34.78% felt an increase in stress because of
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uncertainty (Wang et al., 2020). We see again that uncertainty was one of the reasons people felt

stressed. There was no way of knowing if they would be affected or if their loved ones would be.

A study done by Healthy Minds collected data from 373 campuses nationwide during the

2020–2021 school year. They found that 60% of college students have at least one mental health

problem. A national survey by the American College Health Association found that

“three-quarters of students reported moderate or severe psychological stress.” According to a

survey study done at a large public university in the United States, interviews were conducted

with 195 students. Researchers wanted to know the effects of the pandemic on mental health

issues. It was found that out of the 195 students, 138 said their levels of stress and anxiety

increased due to the outbreak (Son et al., 2020). Many students have suffered from anxiety and

depression, and that has increased by 25%, as mentioned by the World Health Organization.

They said that some reasons for the increase in these disorders were “loneliness, fear of

infection, suffering, and death for oneself and for loved ones; grief after bereavement; and

financial worries, which have also all been cited as stressors leading to anxiety and depression.”

The effects are still being felt today, even if the pandemic is over.

After the pandemic

A study done two years later found that students were still having mental health issues.

This study was conducted in 2022 on 151 college students. Out of all the participants, 95.7%

experienced moderate or severe mood disorders (Hu et al., 2022). This study also showed that

although the level of fear has decreased, it hasn’t returned to the level it was at before the

pandemic. The level of happiness also went down. Learning difficulties were also experienced,
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which can contribute to a feeling of fear or anxiety because students bring themselves down.

During the pandemic, the process of learning proved to be challenging due to the ease of

cheating. A survey conducted by Student Voice surveyed 2,000 college students from 108

institutions and found that “47 percent say it is at least somewhat common in online courses”

(Ezarik, 2021). Numerous students relied on cheating as it was an effortless activity. When

classes resumed, it proved to be challenging to regain their study skills, resulting in poor

performance in class.

Although the pandemic is over, college students are still affected. They had to transition

to online classes, and now being back in person was a new experience. There wasn't much

interaction, and they had to learn how to socialize again. Things have been trying to get back to

normal, and although COVID-19 still exists, it is not compared to when it first started two years

ago.

Conclusion

Mental health impacts everyone. When the pandemic happened, everyone was uncertain

of what was going to happen. Everything shut down, including school. Students had to transition

to virtual learning, which made it difficult for both teachers and students. College students'

mental health plummeted because it was hard to adapt to the new way of life. There was no

socializing, and getting help was not easy. Many had jobs and lost them. They had to go back

home, which for some can cause even more stress. Although we are transitioning back to normal,
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the effects are still being felt. There are still students who are suffering, and going back to

“normal” has been a difficult transition.

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References

Abrams, Z. (2022, October 1). Student mental health is in crisis. Campuses are rethinking their

approach. American Psychological Association.

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/10/mental-health-campus-care

American Psychological Association. College students' mental health is a growing concern,

survey finds. (2013, June 1). https://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/06/college-students

Ezarik, M. (2021, June 20). What worked and what didn't for college students learning through

COVID-19. Inside Higher Ed.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/06/21/what-worked-and-what-didn%E2%80

%99t-college-students-learning-through-covid-19

Hu, K., Godfrey, K., Ren, Q., Wang, S., Yang, X., & Li, Q. (2022). The impact of the COVID-19

pandemic on college students in USA: Two years later. Psychiatry Research, 315.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114685

Son, C., Hegde, S., Smith, A., Wang, X., & Sasangohar, F. (2020). Effects of COVID-19 on

college students' mental health in the United States: Interview survey study. Journal of

Medical Internet Research, 22(9), e21279. https://doi.org/10.2196/21279

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. What is Mental Health? (2023,

April 24). https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health

Wang, X., Hegde, S., Son, C., Keller, B., Smith, A., & Sasangohar, F. (2020). Investigating

mental health of US college students during the COVID-19 pandemic: Cross-sectional

survey study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(9), e22817.

https://doi.org/10.2196/22817
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World Health Organization. COVID-19 pandemic triggers 25% increase in prevalence of anxiety

and depression worldwide. (2022, March 2).

https://www.who.int/news/item/02-03-2022-covid-19-pandemic-triggers-25-increase-in-p

revalence-of-anxiety-and-depression-worldwide

World Health Organization. Mental disorders. (2022, June 8).

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders